1. Field of Invention
This invention relates to a method and apparatus for rounding a viscous and elastic dough piece such as a bread dough piece to form a substantially spherical dough body while feeding it.
2. Prior Art
In bread production, there is a process of forming a bread dough body by rounding a bread dough piece after cutting a continuous sheet of bread dough with a predetermined thickness into bread dough pieces. By this process, the orientation of the gluten tissue can be improved, the shape of the bread dough piece can be made uniform, and a thin crust can be formed on the surface of the bread dough piece to reduce its viscosity.
In a conventional apparatus, to form a bread dough body, a bread dough piece is pressed and rolled on the slanted surface of a device shaped like a cone (see Japanese Utility Model Laid-open No. 55-49664), or a bread dough piece is rounded by a frictional engagement between a conveyor and a slanted plate mounted above the conveyor (see Japanese Utility Model Laid-open No. 58-33901), or a bread dough piece is rounded by swinging a pair of plates (see Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 60-125879).
As stated above, various devices are used in prior-art apparatuses. However, they cannot sufficiently round a bread dough piece. Also, in the prior-art apparatuses a bread dough piece needs to be moved for a long distance to be rounded. Thus, they cannot be made smaller. Thus, also, the inner tissue of the bread dough piece is damaged.